Prophet Shuʿayb: The Orator of the Prophets, and the Beginning of Yūsuf
Section 24 of 24 · Lives of the Prophets
Relate Not This Vision to Your Brothers
قَالَ يَـٰبُنَىَّ لَا تَقْصُصْ رُءْيَاكَ عَلَىٰٓ إِخْوَتِكَ فَيَكِيدُوا۟ لَكَ كَيْدًا ۖ إِنَّ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنَ لِلْإِنسَـٰنِ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ
“He said, “My son, do not relate your dream to your brothers, lest they should devise a plan against you. Surely, Satan is an open enemy for mankind.” (12:5)
His father told him: O my son, relate not this vision of yours to your brothers. He said: don't tell your brothers about this vision. Why? Lest they arrange a plot against you. The father knew that this dream means that Yūsuf will attain very high levels, and that everyone in his family will be under him. And the father knew that this is something the brothers will not accept, because they were already jealous of Yūsuf — and we'll see how bad their jealousy was.
And then he said: inna al-shayṭāna li-l-insāni ʿaduwwun mubīn — verily, Satan is an enemy to humans. Shayṭān is the one who places these disputes among us. It is from Shayṭān: min ʿamal al-shayṭān.
وَقُل لِّعِبَادِى يَقُولُوا۟ ٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنَ يَنزَغُ بَيْنَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنَ كَانَ لِلْإِنسَـٰنِ عَدُوًّا مُّبِينًا
“Tell My servants that they should speak that which is best. Surely, Satan creates discord among them. Indeed, Satan is an open enemy to mankind.” (17:53)
And Allah (swt) says: wa qul li-ʿibādī yaqūlū allatī hiya aḥsan, inna al-shayṭāna yanzaghu baynahum, inna al-shayṭāna kāna li-l-insāni ʿaduwwan mubīnā. Tell My servants to say a good word between themselves. Say a good word — because Shayṭān causes problems amongst you, because Shayṭān is your enemy. Allah (swt) is telling us: say good words.
The good word is a weapon against Shayṭān. Because Shayṭān is using your words against you; he's using your words to bring problems. If we look at problems, most of them are caused because of what we say. So Allah (swt) says: qul li-ʿibādī yaqūlū allatī hiya aḥsan. Say the best. Always speak the best, and that will keep away from you a big part of the plot of Shayṭān.
Ṣallā Allāhu ʿalā Muḥammadin wa ʿalā ālihi wa sallam.
***
* Kept as said. In Sūrat al-Shuʿarāʾ the wording is akhūhum: idh qāla lahum akhūhum Hūd (26:124), akhūhum Ṣāliḥ (26:142) and akhūhum Lūṭ (26:161). The wording akhāhum Hūdā is in 7:65 and 11:50, and akhāhum Ṣāliḥā in 7:73 and 11:61.
** Kept as said. The passage recited, 11:88–90, is three ayat.
*** Kept as said. No counsel is numbered four: the numbering runs from the third, wa mā tawfīqī illā billāh, to this one.
**** Kept as said. The glad tidings of ghulāmin ʿalīm, a knowledgeable boy, are given to Ibrāhīm by the angels: wa bashsharūhu bi-ghulāmin ʿalīm (51:28) and innā nubashshiruka bi-ghulāmin ʿalīm (15:53).